12월 27일자로 AAO (Administrative Appeals Office)에서”Matter of Dhanasar”라는 판례를 통하여 새로운 NIW심사기준을 발표하였습니다. 이는 1998년이후 NIW심사의 근간이 되어왔던 NYSDOT (New York State Department of Transportation) 판례는 폐기 (vacate)되고 향후 NIW는 Dhanasar기준을 통해서 심사를 받게 됨을 의미합니다.

새로운 심사기준을 발표하면서 AAO에서 제시한 가장 큰 이유는 NYSDOT테스트의 3rd prong이 unclear해서 심사결과가 inconsistent한등 혼란이 있어왔다는 것입니다. 특히 과거 심사기준이 entrepreneur신청자등에게 불리한 기준이였다는 점을 강조하고 있는 것으로 보아서는 entrepreneur를 위한 “비자”로 기대를 받아왔었던 오바마 행정부의 International Entrepreneur Rule의 운명이 불확실해지자 NIW를 통해 이 entrepreneur class를 구제하려는 것은 아닌가 하는 조심스러운 분석도 가능해 보입니다. 일차적인 느낌은 현재까지 NIW를 통해서 영주권을 취득해온 주요 계층 — STEM분야 석/박사 학위보유자 – 은 Dhanasar체제에서 큰 영향을 받을것 같지는 않습니다. Unchanged 내지는 오히려 약간 더 쉬워질 수도 있을것이라는 것이 제 소견입니다.

아래 영문으로 정리한 아주 간략한summary를 참고하시지요. 보다 detailed analysis는 별도의 post로 안내하여 드리겠습니다.

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New Precedent Decision Establishing New Standard for Adjudicating NIW Cases

On Tuesday, December 27, the USCIS Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) announced a precedent decision, Matter of Dhanasar (Dhanasar), setting forth a new analytic framework for adjudicating “national interest waiver” (NIW) cases (https://www.justice.gov/eoir/page/file/920996/download). The new Dhanasar decision effectively replaces the prior 1998 decision, Matter of New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), whose three-prong eligibility test had been adopted by the AAO, and had long been the framework for USCIS’ adjudication of NIW cases.

This week’s new AAO decision vacates the NYSDOT test and replaces it with a new three-prong test set out below:

1. The foreign national’s proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance.
2. The foreign national is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor.
3. On balance, it would be beneficial to the United States to waive the job offer and labor certification requirements of the EB-2 category.

The new Dhanasar standard generally appears to be more flexible, and seems to suggest a broadening of the availability of NIWs to more eligible foreign nationals, notably including entrepreneurs. Indeed, in Dhanasar, the AAO specifically notes that this new test, “is meant to apply to a greater variety of individuals”.

Approval of NIW petitions, however, remains within the discretion of USCIS. The practical impact of this new standard will, in large part, depend on how USCIS adjudicators actually apply the test in practice. It is still early days, but we will closely monitor NIW outcomes under the new standard, and provide updates as more nuanced guidance and trends begin to emerge.

김재학 변호사 (member of the New York bar since 2003), Doeul Law LLP

http://www.doeul.com / @doeullaw.com">info@doeullaw.com / 310-598-3770

Copyright © Jae-Hak Kim, Esq., 2016. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from the author is strictly prohibited.